


Insomnia

by wardenmages



Series: Evolve [2]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Detroit Evolution, Detroit Evolution Artfest (Detroit: Become Human), Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Sleep Deprivation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-10
Updated: 2020-07-10
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:48:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25175656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wardenmages/pseuds/wardenmages
Summary: Written for the Detroit Evolution artfest.Gavin never sleeps well, but his body remembers every year like clockwork the day he nearly died alone in the snow, and he can't sleep at all. After nearly three full days without sleep, Nines intervenes to take care of him.
Relationships: Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed
Series: Evolve [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1812487
Comments: 5
Kudos: 152





	Insomnia

Sixty four hours. Gavin hadn't slept for nearly 3 whole days, either on purpose or his typical insomnia. It happened every January without fail - he always had nightmares, but they were always so much worse in the winter, and especially so around the anniversary. Twenty years later he still couldn't cope with it.

He was getting better. He knew he was. Nines helped more than Gavin could ever actually tell him. But like clockwork, starting on January 9th, the worst dreams and sleep paralysis and insomnia hung over his head like an ax waiting to drop. So he stayed awake. Nines just thought the first night was normal, like any other night he tossed and turned until his alarm went off. The second night, he could practically feel Nines constantly scanning him.

His head was starting to feel heavy and foggy, like it was full of lead. Nines demanded his keys to drive them home after he blacked out just trying to stand from his desk. He was too hot and too cold all at once and he just wanted to get home, feed the cat, and find movies to space out to until morning. 

"Gavin, how many hours have you been awake?" Nines asked casually as he drove.

"Dunno." 

Not a complete lie. He really couldn't think of the number, like it was just out of reach. Math was a little too complicated at the moment.

"I would calculate just about sixty hours, with a couple here and there. Correct?"

Gavin hunched his shoulders up to his ears defensively. "So what? I just can't sleep, I'm fine."

“That isn’t healthy,” Nines murmured. “I’m worried. Is something wrong?”

“Just...” He cut himself off to keep from snapping. Nines was just trying to help. He knew that, even if the way he did it felt so frustrating right now. “Just a rough week. Always is.”

“I see.”

He rested his head on the window with a quiet _thunk_ on the glass and closed his eyes. He wouldn’t fall asleep in the next five minutes, but it helped make his eyes hurt a little less. He wanted to smoke, but Nines would get pissy about it, and that would just make his head hurt more. When the car slowed to a stop he could actually feel it rocking back and forth. God, he was fucked up.

“I’ll make dinner tonight,” Nines offered.

Even the thought of eating made his throat close up. “Not hungry.”

“How about just toast?”

“Fine,” he mumbled. He didn’t want to fight about it when he already felt like shit. “... Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

Nines insisted on holding his hand, planting a kiss on Gavin’s cheek while they took the elevator up to the apartment. Everything was a bit hazy as Nines unlocked the door and herded Gavin to the couch, peeled his jacket off for him, and shoved him down onto the cushions. At some point the TV flipped on, playing his favorite movie for when he couldn’t sleep, _Matilda._ The first time they’d watched it together, he could practically feel Nines psychoanalyzing his love for a film about an abused kid finding a new family, but whatever. He liked the damn movie. Didn’t matter if he was projecting or whatever term his therapist used when she found out.

“Here. I can make something else later if you’re feeling up to it.”

Nines set the plate directly in his hands, like he didn’t trust Gavin to hold it otherwise, and settled down beside him. It was just regular bread with a small amount of butter, but it still felt like too much. When he was done, Nines set the plate on the table. Gavin still felt like shit but it took some of the edge off at least. They didn’t talk for the rest of the movie, which was good, because Gavin wasn’t able to hold onto a thought for more than a few seconds before losing track of it. 

He closed his eyes, just to make them stop hurting for a little while, but then...

Then he was in that alley. He couldn’t even feel the cold because everything was just a numbing mass of pain and irritation. He looked down and saw blood on his hands, and when he wiped at his face, even more rubbed onto his skin. Everything was feeling hazy again, and then numb again, and he could see cars driving past, ignoring the kid dying right next to them.

_Gavin-_

He jerked awake. Nines was crouching in front of him, his light twitching between yellow and red. His hands were on Gavin’s thighs but he wasn’t holding him in place. Just pressed him into the cushions a little, enough to bring him back and ground him.

All he had to do was look at his boyfriend’s bright blue eyes and he knew exactly where he was.

He couldn’t help the tears building up, completely blinding him, or the sob closing up his throat. Nines didn’t move closer, didn’t move, just waited for Gavin to make the first move.

“Gavin,” Nines repeated so softly. Fuck, he was actually going to cry. “You’re alright now. You’re safe.”

“I’m so fucking tired.”

“I know.”

“I can’t, can’t do this. I can’t _do this._ ”

His voice cracked on the admission, and his throat hurt from trying to hold back the tears. He was exhausted. Everything ached, he couldn’t even think, and everything seemed too big and too loud. Even sleep was out of reach, waking him back up before he could even begin to make up for the rest he was missing. He couldn’t do it anymore. He didn’t want to. He couldn’t even be angry, everything just hurt so much.

Nines shifted back to the couch and immediately pulled Gavin into his arms, hugging him tightly. He wasn’t proud of the squeak that came out of him as he held back another sob.

“You’re okay, I’ve got you,” Nines murmured, running his hand through Gavin’s hair, and god that felt nice. “Let’s get you in bed. Think you can head into your room?”

“I can’t do this,” he repeated. They were the only words he could think with so little space in his head. His breath hitched on yet another gross noise and it felt like he couldn’t breathe. “Nines, please...”

“Hey, I’m still here. Just let me take over for a little bit - I’ll take care of everything. You don’t have to worry about anything until you feel better, okay?”

His instincts said to resist, to not give up the last shred of control he had over himself. The rest of him went slack against his boyfriend, allowing Nines to gingerly arrange his limbs.

"Okay," he mumbled.

Nines pulled him up off of the couch and walked him slowly and cautiously to their bedroom. Asshole wasn't on the bed, which bothered him in a way it usually wouldn't. Everything just felt like too much.

“Here - let’s put on something more comfortable. I’ll be right back.”

“Don’t leave,” he blurted out.

Nines smiled and pressed his forehead to Gavin’s. “I’m just going to your dresser.”

He nodded miserably. When Nines stepped away he let his eyes slip closed again, even though he didn’t like the way his body swayed back and forth when he did it. At least it blocked out some of the light. God, he felt like shit. He hadn’t gone this long without any sleep in a while. Usually he only lasted a day or so, but this was close to three whole days. Fuck.

“Here, change into this while I get everything else ready.”

A thin t-shirt and shorts were pushed into his hands. It took way more effort than he was happy with to peel off his jeans and all three layers he was wearing up top. Once the sleep clothes were on, Nines came back and adjusted them for him before nudging him towards the bed.

“I lowered the heat in the apartment to sixty-five,” Nines said as Gavin lied down. “And I brought the softer blanket from the living room so the weighted one doesn’t irritate you as much.”

He continued to explain everything as he did it - turning off the lights, setting the movie back up on one of their tablets and lowering the brightness, laying the blankets on top of him, scooping Asshole out of the closet and placing him at Gavin’s feet. The cat grumbled at being moved, but still walked up Gavin’s hip and settled on his ribs. Gavin spaced out for a few minutes just staring at the screen, blinked, and then saw a water bottle and packet of fruit snacks beside the tablet.

“In case you need them,” Nines added, sitting on the edge of the bed behind him. “Would you like me to stay?”

He flinched and nodded. “Yes. Just, if I fall asleep... for a little while. You don’t have to.”

“Of course.”

Nines shifted to lie down on top of the blankets and placed his hand on Gavin’s shoulder. After a moment, he started rubbing back and forth with his thumb in a slow rhythm. Gavin didn’t want to close his eyes. He would just have another nightmare, and it wouldn’t matter how much effort Nines put into taking care of him. Nothing was going to fix it. He was just _stuck._

“Close your eyes,” Nines ordered, like he could see through Gavin’s skull.

“It’s not gonna work,” he mumbled.

“It would make me feel better if you tried. I’ll be right here.”

He huffed and did it anyway. It took a few tries, but finally, thankfully, everything went dark.

* * *

Nines waited for Gavin’s vitals to hit a deeper sleep pattern before remotely turning the volume down on the tablet. His body temperature was still higher than average, but hopefully it would decrease as he rested. Nines regretted not intervening sooner. Gavin may not have listened to him, but he should have tried regardless. 

Gavin began to move at 1:34 in the morning, but it was easy to soothe him back to sleep. He was just so exhausted that he couldn’t wake up all the way. Usually he managed a few hours each night, so to go nearly three full days with barely any sleep at all was strange. Nines would ask in the morning, or whenever Gavin woke up. They certainly wouldn’t be going to work so he could sleep in as long as he needed. He couldn’t catch up on all of the sleep he’d lost, but it would be a good start.

“Nines?”

Gavin’s voice was muffled by the blankets, barely audible over the movie. Nines leaned in to rest his forehead against Gavin’s messy hair.

“I’m here,” he answered softly. Gavin mumbled something that did not sound like any language Nines was programmed with. “What is it?”

Gavin hummed and tugged the blankets down, nudging the cat off of his perch. “Get under here.”

“If you’re sure.”

“Mhmm...”

Nines lifted the covers and slipped under them, tucking them in on Gavin’s side and wrapping his arm around Gavin’s chest. The constant tension in his body loosened almost instantly, and Nines realized that he was shaking. He must have missed that through the blankets before.

“Are you alright?”

“Y-yeah, fine, fine... Fine...”

He took the chance to press his palm to Gavin’s forehead for a more accurate scan of his temperature. Gavin grumbled but didn’t swat him away. Hm, still above average. Perhaps he caught one of the thousand minor illnesses traveling around the city with his immune system so compromised from his lack of sleep.

“Go back to sleep, I’m here now.”

“Love you.”

Nines smiled. “I love you too.”

* * *

Gavin woke the next morning wrapped around Nines clinging like a baby koala. He knew he should probably feel embarrassed but even as his head cleared a little, he couldn’t find it in himself to care.

“Good morning,” Nines said quietly.

“What time’s it?”

“Nearly noon. I called out for both of us last night. How do you feel?”

“Better. Sort of.”

“Hmm.” Oh, Gavin did not like that sound. “Your fever hasn’t risen, thankfully. Taking it easy today should help.”

“Fever?”

“Nines smiled and leaned in to plant a kiss on his forehead. “Yes, Gavin. You managed to get yourself sick for the first time since I met you.”

“Ugh, shit.”

“Indeed.” 

Shithead. “I need a shower, or... something. I feel gross.”

Nines frowned. “Yes, you were overheating a bit at one point, but you began to panic when I tried moving the blankets.”

He could hear the question in that statement, even if Nines didn’t intend to ask. He’d ask eventually, or he would just look all sad until Gavin spilled first. Honestly, Gavin would have told him before it he wasn’t so screwed up the past few days.

“Yeah, the, uh... nightmares are worse this time of year. ‘Cause of the snow, and this is around when it happened, so...”

“Oh, Gavin...”

Nines arms tightened around him as he kissed Gavin again, and again he nearly wanted to cry. God, he could never get used to how affectionate Nines was, but he _loved_ being on the receiving end.

“I’m fine,” he mumbled. “I always... sleep better when you’re here, though.”

Nines was beaming brighter than the goddamn sun. “I’ll go make you breakfast while you shower.”

Shit, Gavin loved this man.

He tilted his head up to kiss Nines’ lips as he slowly untangled his limbs, lingering as long as possible. “Thanks.”

“Anytime. Always.”

**Author's Note:**

> It's been a long time since I even stayed up more than 24 hours at a time, but I've been really sleep deprived lately, so I projected that onto poor Gavin lol. It's okay tho, he has a soft robot boyfriend to take care of him :)


End file.
